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OneBlueMoon Asked March 2021

How can I control my mom's night eating habits?

My mom has Alzhiemer's and lives with me. Every night she forgets that she has had dinner. We eat around 7:30. Her appetite is good and cleans up her plate. Around 9-10, I give her fruit but she still wants to stay up till 11. She forgets she ate anything so she asks me for more food! I say it's too late to eat but sometimes I give her a bowl of cereal or a fruit to get her to go to bed. She wakes up 2 hours later and looks for foods in the kitchen. I leave her some cheerios and couple of fruits like a banana and a tangerine on the counter before I go to bed. In the morning I notice all of them are gone! She gets up otherwise and goes into my fridge or each cabinets! If she finds anything she eats them all, like a box of cookies or half of a melon etc. etc.
How can I control these midnight's eatings and her crazy appetite? Am I doing the right thing leaving her snacks during the night? I'm worried she gains too much weight since she's not active as much.
Please advice.

bevthegreat Mar 2021
You should first check with her Dr to see if there is any underlining health reasons she might be feeling hungry, then...

If she isn't fat, I wouldn't worry about leaving her good healthy snacks.

Also for her night snack before you go to bed, try a bowl of oatmeal because it'll make her stomach stay fuller longer.

You could also have her drink a cup of sleepy time tea and check with her Dr to see if she can take a 5 mil of over the counter melontonin as a sleep Aide.

Keep leaving her a healthy snacks in her room so she won't go roaming around the kitchen.

If all the above doesn't work, the last alternative is to put locks on your pantry and refrigerator so you can lock everything up at night.

I have a 96 yr old Dad that likes snacks during the night too.

He lives in his own home with 24 hr Care. I buy easy healthy snacks like mini muffins, breakfast drink,, breakfast bar,, yogurt, applesauce for them to give him whenever he wants, even Midnight or 4 AM.

I figure at 96, he deserves to do what he wants .

Maple3044 Mar 2021
Good luck. I gave up trying to stop my husband from getting up and making toast at 2am. Lots and lots of toast. Toast with butter and cinnamon sugar all over the kitchen. Literally. I tried hiding the bread an butter. That didn't work; he would go out to the freezer and bring in another loaf and another pound of butter. Sometimes he would eat it all and sometimes he'd just eat 2 pieces and leave the other 24 pieces on paper plates.

And coffee - when he could no longer figure out how to make coffee in the coffee pot (and he'd wake me up at 2am to make it) I bought a Keurig. So he makes 3 or 4 cups of coffee to go with all the toast. And he drinks sip.or two, and makes another cup.
I tried leaving him sandwiches or cereal with fruit etc, and he'd eat it while he made toast.
So I gave up. He feels happy that he's doing something and he is eating, although not very nutritional. His PCP said to keep protein shakes on hand and make him drink at least one a day.
The PCP said i shouldn't be so rigid about what he eats, because of the ultimate outcome. Just my 2 cents.
gdaughter Mar 2021
I feel your pain...might suggest that if you can lock the door giving access to the freezer it might be of some limited help. We have deadbolts on the doors to the garage and front door, just as a precaution to wandering which really hasn't happened.

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JoAnn29 Mar 2021
I don't see anything wrong it what ur doing. But I would just leave one thing out for her. You seem to be giving her choices which she can no longer do. We used to take my Mom out with us. After a time she would just stare at the menu. Since I knew what she liked, I would give her 2 choices. When that stopped working, I just ordered her favorite thing, liver and onions. She was happy.

The brain no longer tells the body its full. And like u said, she forgets. All part of the desease. Oh yes, baby lock everything.
EllensOnly Mar 2021
We had a friend like that.  A group of us met monthly for dinner at a local spot.  Several of the ladies were retired and had worked together or gone to school together.  One of my friends was the DIL of one of them and her sister & I came along as the youngsters (mind you I'm over 60).  One of the ladies had progressing dementia. Fretted over selling her house and having to downsize.  If she got a hold of her wallet spent the night looking at her checkbook or wondering how she was going to pay (her SIL had her $ for dinner).  The menu was a real challenge so I took it upon myself to sit with her.  When she didn't know what to order I reminded her she liked the chef salad and the waitress knew how she wanted it.  "oh that would be good"  When she circled back to what to order we talked about the salad again and then I'd move her off by asking a question.  Usually I could get her interested in talking about an area in another state she lived in when she was 1st married  and I was from that area. 

Limiting choices also worked with my mother.  Do you want to do this or that, never what do you want to do.  That created too many choices and we then did nothing.  Mom - I going to the store - do you want me to pick up a roasting chicken for dinner on Sunday or a Pork Loin?  It was usually chicken as long as I was going to cook it.
Cynthiasdaughtr Mar 2021
I noticed that you usually put out foods that are high in carbohydrates. They pump sugar into our bloodstreams, our bodies burn the sugar up and leaves us hungry again in an hour or two. If she has any insulin resistance, the signals get even more confused. Try putting out snacks that are high in protean and fat. It takes more time to digest them and she won't get so much of a sugar peak. I would suggest adding a piece of cheese or peanut butter to her 9pm snack.
Then, make sure she isn't eating because of anxiety or boredom.

Grandma1954 Mar 2021
You can get locks for cabinets. There are magnetic ones that are placed on the inside of the cabinet so they are not visible.
You can get a child lock for the refrigerator, or just a light weight chain and a lock. If you have a separate pantry a hook and eye lock should work. Place it very high so it is out of sight. Or a hasp and lock will work well. (I placed one on the bathroom linen closet where I stored medications so my Husband could not get to things.)
Do not give in to giving her food after you have told her no more.
Do not leave food out for her to find.
Start getting her on a schedule and try getting her a bit ore active. A walk before or after dinner. A walk before or after lunch.
Talk to her doctor about her waking up and wandering around at night.
I would be concerned about her wandering around at night. Is there ANY possibility that she could get out of the house and wander away?
OneBlueMoon Mar 2021
She can not get outside. She only wakes up to go to the bathroom or to eat something. I know she is hypoglycemic. Thought maybe that's a cause. She recently wakes up and goes to the bathroom to talk to her imaginary friend(herself) in the mirror. Her doctor says that's okay since she feels alone. But the rest has been for food. She won't go to bed unless she eats something. During the day she sleeps and when wakes up she wants a snack. Sometimes she hordes foods in her bed bc she says she gets sick and shakey (hypoglycemic).
Bridger46146 Mar 2021
Cereal and fruit are carbs - may be fueling her appetite. Half turkey sandwich at bedtime contains tryptophan which will convert to serotonin and calm her down. Also good is half a peanut butter sandwich - no jelly. High protein and higher fat. Will hold off food cravings longer.

Block her access to kitchen. Lock up cabinets and refrigerator.

AnnReid Mar 2021
Has she gained weight? Most people who know me think MY eating habits are “crazy”, but I don’t.

I think you’re doing fine- maybe take the sugary stuff with you when you go to bed but fruit, cereal, all sounds good. If she hasn’t actually gained too much weight so far, I think you’re doing right by her.


You sound like the Angel’s Angel! She’s lucky to have you!
OneBlueMoon Mar 2021
Thank you for your kind words...My siblings never cared and or didn't want to. I'm all she has but it's getting very difficult...I do what I could since she would've done the same if the table was turned.
Taarna Mar 2021
Time to put locks on the refrigerator and cabinets. Also consult her doctor to let him/her know that your mom has problems with satiety, feeling full.

ACaringDaughter Mar 2021
Is her weight normal? If so, keep on doing what you are doing.

If her weight is high and she has health problems due to her weight, slowly taper what you are leaving as a snack.

If her doctor thinks she is underweight, increase the calories in the snack.

A nutritionist informed me that everyone should have 3 meals and 2 snacks daily for the beat metabolic functioning. A snack should generally have half the calories of a meal with 3 of the following components: fruit, vegetable, protein, dairy and/or fat. The recommended calories per meal vary by age/height/weight.

An elderly person with a healthy appetite is a blessing! My mom stopped eating completely once and we started her eating again, but this was a very scary time. In order to switch on her appetite, we were instructed to encourage higher fat content and more caloric foods.

Another relative struggled through anorexia with a “fear” of food - be so grateful that your mom doesn’t have these terrifying and sometimes fatal health problems.

With Alzheimer’s, she cannot enjoy life as she once did, it is so nice that she is enjoying food.

cweissp Mar 2021
At ninety, I wouldn't worry to much about your mother's diet, she's pretty much earned to eat what she wants. Keeping it healthy is good. Wandering the kitchen when everyone else is asleep is a little worrying. I'd be concerned she turn on the oven and range.

Pick your battles with the ones that really count - those involving safety.

Best to you and your family.

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